The subject matter disclosed herein relates to appliances such as water heaters, and more particularly to techniques for preventing water seepage in water heaters.
Water heaters including heat pump water heaters (HPWHs) utilize a number of heating elements. Water heaters typically comprise a tank which stores water, a number of heating elements, a layer of foam surrounding the tank, and a wrapper surrounding the layer of foam. In addition, water heaters may have an external condenser placed between the tank and the layer of foam.
During the life of a water heater, the heating element will typically need to be serviced several times. To facilitate servicing of heating elements, the heating elements are placed such that at least a portion of the heating element protrudes from the tank, the foam and the wrapper of a water heater. It is important to keep the foam which surrounds the water heater dry to maintain heat efficiency and prevent corrosion of various parts of the water heater.